5 Sports Cars You Can Barely Enter (or Exit)


These European cars may have doors, but good luck getting past them.


By Clifford Atiyeh Thu 1:52 AM

It's not easy climbing into a race car. NASCAR drivers have to contort themselves through a window opening. Formula 1 drivers -- God forbid if any are over 6 feet tall -- have to remove the steering wheel. Le Mans Prototype drivers are sealed into the cockpit before the car is even built -- what other explanation is there for how a human fits in the Audi R18?

Some road cars, especially road cars based on race cars, are nearly as impossible to enter and exit. Some embarrass the driver, making him appear geriatric and clumsy as he valets in front of the hotel. Others simply cause indescribable pain. Sports car owners put up with it, because once they've nestled inside, the driving experience makes it worth the chiropractic bills.

Here are five European sports cars that don't bat an eye to ergonomics, whether now or two decades prior. Read on, then tell us in the comments section about more cars -- everyday cars -- that likewise belong in this category.
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Lamborghini Could Launch an SUV in 2017, Winkelmann Says


By Nick Gibbs, Automotive News Europe


By AutoWeek 17 hours ago



Lamborghini could launch an SUV in 2017, CEO Stephan Winkelmann told a German newspaper.

The Italian supercar brand will unveil a concept for the vehicle at the Beijing motor show on April 23 to test public reaction, according to a report in the German business daily Handelsblatt on Thursday.


Winkelmann wants the SUV as a third model line along with the Gallardo and Aventador super cars to help make the brand profitable. China is a key market for high-margin luxury SUVs.


"We definitely need a third line in the mid and long term," Winkelmann told the paper. "An SUV would be the first Lamborghini for everyday use, not just for the race track or weekends. We would have the opportunity to win new customers."


Lamborghini has been losing money since 2009 and is under pressure from parent Volkswagen Group to become profitable, the newspaper report said.

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Is Toyota Ready to Get Sporty?


A new global vehicle platform suggests the conservative automaker may be ready to take risks.


By Clifford Atiyeh Tue 1:39 PM

Toyota hasn't built a sports car under its own brand in seven years, but that may change under a new product-development plan announced Monday by CEO Akio Toyoda, according to a Reuters report.

The Toyota New Global Architecture will let Toyota cut costs by 30 percent while enabling multiple vehicles to be developed for different markets at the same time. Toyota will be developing three front-wheel-drive models under the new platform.

The initiative also will reduce the number of Toyota executives responsible for approving a vehicle in development -- currently up to 100, the report said -- which very directly killed any fun along the way. Just read this quote from chief designer Tukuo Fukuichi:

"Toyota's problem was that it had too many filters. When you have that many people weighing in, you end up developing cars by eliminating the negatives, not by creating something positive, by taking risks."<!--EndofExcerptMarker-->


While the new Scion FR-S will complement the company's only other sporty car under $30,000, the Scion tC, it's still a far cry from when the midengine MR-2 Spyder (pictured above) and the famous Celica coupe were dropped in 2005. The Camry no longer offers a manual transmission, and to get something exciting from Lexus, you'll need to drop $62,000 for the IS F or $375,000 for the untouchable LFA. The only sporty Toyota we can find is a Camry SE, which looks somewhat menacing in black. The new 2013 Avalon at least has a "sport" button that firms up the steering and paddle shifters to raise blood pressure.

Indeed, even Toyota Racing Development, the company's would-be performance division, is more skewed toward bolting superchargers on its trucks and modifying springs on Scion models than anything that might seriously beef up the average Toyota.

"I'm not sure how many future sports cars we have in the pipeline," Toyota spokesman Wade Hoyt told MSN Autos. "But Akio Toyoda is a real car guy. He races. He gets it. And he is determined that the company has to build more exciting, emotional products. That goes beyond styling to include better handling and driver involvement."

[Source: Reuters via Automotive News]

 

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